My career
Health educator
Thuy Vu
Research Coordinator at the University of
Washington and Project Director at the Fred
Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle,
Washington
BLS fast facts: Health educators
• May 2011 wage and salary employment: 56,610
• 2010–20 projection: 37 percent growth
(much faster than average)
• May 2011 median annual wage: $47,940
• Typical education and training: Bachelor’s
degree. Some positions, such as those in
public health, require a master’s degree.
• May 2011 top employing industries: Hospitals,
local and state governments, individual and
family services, and outpatient care centers
A
mentor made the difference at the
start of Thuy Vu’s career. If not for
the encouragement of her mentor,
Thuy wouldn’t have pursued the master’s
degree that is critical to professional development in her field.
In her jobs at the University of Washington and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research
Center, Thuy coordinates and directs projects
related to cancer research. The jobs overlap,
with both focusing on analyzing data and
sharing research results for preventing cancer
and promoting good health.
Although the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) classifies the type of work Thuy
does as that of a health educator, her job tasks
differ from most of the health educators she
knows. Other health educators with whom
Thuy collaborates have more direct interaction
with patients than she does in her researchbased work.
Job guidance from a mentor can be helpful. But it was especially important to Thuy,
whose mentor helped her from the beginning to become involved in research and in
14 Occupational Outlook Quarterly • Fall 2012
promoting good health. In an occupation
like Thuy’s, which can vary from one job to
another, understanding why her work matters
was a key factor in pursuing this career.
What do you do?
I research cancer prevention and promote
good health, help communities understand
research data and how to use it, and promote
best practices (ways of doing the same thing
in different situations) that are based on
evidence. I work with academic researchers,
healthcare professionals, community groups,
and state and local health departments.
For example, one of my projects is to
evaluate a national colorectal cancer screening program. (A screening is a type of exam
to detect disease in people, even when they
have no symptoms.) There are guidelines that
outline evidence-based strategies for promoting colorectal cancer screening. I’m working
with a team to identify which strategies the
states are using and to study how states are
adapting and using the strategies. We hope
this information helps us to understand ways
that these strategies can be used with different populations and in different settings to
increase colorectal cancer screening rates.
How did you get these jobs?
Through networking and word of mouth. But
the work I do now has evolved from what I
was originally hired to do. Initially, my experience was in designing educational, intervention, and recruitment materials that would be
tested in the field. Now, my focus is more on
evaluating and sharing results.
How does your education tie in?
My bachelor’s degree is in political science,
with a minor in public health and community
medicine. The job tasks themselves reflect
my minor field of study, but the political science gives me an understanding of the policy
behind the work.
I also have an MPH (master of public
health) degree with training in the social
and behavioral sciences. During grad school,
I held a graduate-student appointment that
required a practicum (supervised, hands-on
experience) at a cancer research center. I had
been exposed to a lot of the MPH curriculum
before grad school because of my job, but
grad school brought together everything I’d
already been doing and gave me the perspective to fully understand it.
The only reason I have my MPH is
because of my mentor, Deb, who was the principal investigator of a research group I was
part of. Deb made me understand the importance of having a graduate degree in this field.
I had no interest in going back to school after
college until she encouraged me to get my
master’s.
What was your first job out of college?
I had a temporary job with a small accounting
firm. The head of the firm was very helpful to
me when I got an offer elsewhere for a fulltime job. He took on a “big brother” role to
help me with things like negotiating a salary
and benefits.
The job itself didn’t necessarily influence
my future career plans. But what was meaningful to me was having someone be so supportive even as I was leaving. I got that same
kind of support, and more, from Deb later on.
What else led you to your current jobs?
Once, when I was almost finished with my
bachelor’s, I was home on break and talking about school. Someone asked what I was
interested in, and I said, “Psychology.” After
I got back to school, I wondered why I’d said
that—I was a political science major and had
taken only one psychology class. But I think I
knew even then that I had an interest in understanding behavior.
And in the field, in my job, working in
the community, the behavioral science part
has been a critical piece. The hard part about
science is that what works in research works
in a vacuum. But interacting with other people
is what’s illuminating and informative. It’s the
human part that can really throw a wrench in
the scientific data.
Any surprises along the way?
The piece that’s been most surprising to me is
the value placed on mentoring in the academic
research community. I’m humbled by the passion and seriousness of mentors, especially the
degree of their dedication in helping younger
researchers to grow. I’m where I am today
because of Deb.
Deb was a phenomenal mentor who took
the nurturing of younger staff very seriously.
I felt like I was such a priority in her life.
Along with helping me develop in my career,
she taught me to have confidence in myself,
nurtured my interests, and counseled me. Deb
really gave me opportunities that made me
understand the world of research and working
with communities.
What’s your best advice?
Actively peruse job postings to strengthen
your skill set. If you see a posting for a job
that you think looks interesting, dissect it
to see what the job really is, what skills are
required, and what is required to get those
skills. Try to build up your skill set based on
those known criteria, or at least study the job
posting and know what’s involved so you can
speak intelligently about it. Beyond that, get
hands-on experience through a practicum,
internship, or volunteer opportunity.
More broadly, my advice is to find somebody who is willing to take you under his
or her wing to teach you and support you.
Ideally, a mentor might be able to provide
opportunities to grow, but it’s important to
understand that a mentor’s job is not to get
you, or give you, a job. A good mentor can be
invaluable in jumpstarting a career.
Thuy Vu was interviewed by Kathleen Green, an economist in the Office of Occupational
Statistics and Employment Projections, BLS. Kathleen can be reached at (202) 691-5711
or at [email protected].
Fall 2012 • Occupational Outlook Quarterly
15